sweet picks

Albion Clementine Peplum Tankini: I have a love hate relationship with swimsuit season. I love the idea of soaking up the sun poolside, but hate the idea of doing it in a skintight, barely there swimsuit. That’s why I fell in love with Albion Fit’s swim line and this peplum tankini in particular. The fabric is awesome, holds you in all the right places and the peplum bottom disguises those troublesome tummy spots! Perfection!Image Source: Albion

Round Beach Towel: This cute patterned round beach towel is a summer must have! Not only is it cute, but it’s multifunctional as a beach towel, picnic blanket, regular blanket, or a mat for your tent while camping. It’s a microfiber towel which is awesome because it is super absorbent and dries quickly compared to normal beach towels that don’t seem to get you dry and stays wet all day after you towel off after your first swim. So grab one of these towels and your friends and head to the beach! And if a friend forgets to bring their towel, this one is big enough for the both of you!Image Source: Amazon

Starbucks Cold Cup: Beat the summer heat in style with this magenta cold cup from Starbucks. I don’t know about you, but if I have a cute tumbler to carry around, I tend to drink a lot more water. This is also perfect for cold brew iced coffee or iced tea, whatever your summertime drink may be! It’s easy to clean, BPA free and only $16. Image Source: Starbucks

Bridget City Blooms Pillow on White: I have been in love with Caitlin Wilson’s pillows for a long time. I religiously follow her instagram and find myself “double tapping” her photos daily. Her design is simple and her patterns are a perfect balance of polished and whimsical. So when I was thinking about the perfect item for the Spring edition of “sweet picks” this fun, floral pillow popped into my head. It’s colors are bright and clean–without being too loud or over done. The pattern is a breezy floral print and the pillow itself is soft to lounge on. It makes a perfect edition to any couch or bed needing a Spring pick-me-up.

Now, these pillows aren’t cheap, but definitely worth the splurge for one or two (you can get Target or Home Goods pillows to fill in the rest). And if now isn’t the time for a pillow splurge, now you know where to look next time you’re in the market for the perfect accent pillow.Image Source: Caitlin Wilson

Good Natured Soy Candle: The allure of Anthropologie gets me every time! I can never just walk past the store, I always have to go in and check out all of the amazing stuff they have even if it’s just to window shop. Which is hard to do because I usually want it all! This time I went in to window shop, but as I was browsing around I came across a giant display of cute tins of soy candles and had to smell them all! The one that caught my eye first was the Apricot and Basil one. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect this combo to smell like, but I was curious and oh my goodness! One sniff of this candle and I was in LOVE!! IT SMELLS SO GOOOOD!!

You need to make a trip into your local Anthro and smell it! Trust me, your nose will be in heaven! After smelling the others I kept coming back to this one because it smelt so delicious and sweet. I knew I probably wasn’t leaving the store without purchasing this candle. I held onto it as I browsed the rest of the store and as I was looking around, I kept catching myself opening up the candle just to smell it! You know it’s that good when you are walking around the store looking like an addict getting their fix whiffing the candle.Image Source: Anthropologie

Artificial Plant in Stand Large – Threshold: I’ll admit it, I have a black thumb when it comes to house plants. I even somehow lack the ability to keep catus and succulents alive. That’s why I have no shame when it comes to decorating my house with artificial plants. And you know what, I’m always in luck because my favorite go-to store (Target of course) always has really beautiful artifical plants that you would never guess aren’t real. This plant is my recent purchase and I love it. It’s very pretty, modern and fits in nicely with the rest of my decor. So if you’re like me and are lacking that green thumb, check out this plant and the others available at Target.Image Source: Target

Paper Mache Deer Head with Wavy Antlers: Christmas is my favorite time of the year and this paper mâché stag head is the exact style I have been looking for my holiday mantle decor! And the awesome part about this stag head is that I can spray paint it gold just like I want! I love how it’s such a statement piece perched up on my mantle along with my other Christmas decorations. I also love that it is light and I don’t have to worry about a heavy ceramic piece.Image Source: Hobby Lobby

Wood Countdown Calendar: If you are anything like me, you love perusing (stalking) Target way before most people are even thinking of decorating for the Holidays to get the first pick of all things Christmas. I was doing just that back in October and stumbled upon this dream of an advent calendar and it jumped right into my virtual cart. It is the perfect, timeless piece to use year after year. Target definitely did not disappoint with this one.Image Source: Target

Peppermint Lane Wooden Plaque: I walked by this adorable wooden plaque probably 5 times in the past few months and everytime it caught my eye. I didn’t want to spend a lot of money on new Christmas decorations this year, but when I saw this was on sale for under $15 I couldn’t resist. It’s the perfect addition to my Christmas decor. Image Source: Michaels

Maker’s Holiday Plaid Stocking with Fur Cuff: I don’t know about you guys, but we have been in full decoration mode all week getting the house Christmas-ified. So for this month’s sweet picks we just couldn’t resist picking our favorite holiday decor items. This year my obsession is red and black buffalo check plaid. I want it on everything. And I mean EVERYTHING. So when I was shopping at Joanne’s and saw this I died. Buffalo check with a touch of fur, um hello perfect. The fur gives the classic, woodsy buffalo check plaid a sassy, more modern feel. This is no lumberjack stocking. This is an adventurous, classy, fun, and sassy lady stocking. So if you’re into this like I am head to Joanne’s because they are on sale RIGHT NOW for $8!!Image Source: Joanne

Quaker Limited Edition Pumpkin Spice Instant Oatmeal: Fall is the time of year where we all get obsessed with the pumpkin craze, but how can you not? Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin bagels, pumpkin EVERYTHING! In my opinion, it’s all amazing and I can’t get enough. I was in target the other day and noticed they have a whole pumpkin flavor section right when you walk in. It was fun to see all of the pumpkin flavors lined up and ripe for the picking. The one thing that caught my attention was the Pumpkin Quaker Instant Oatmeal. I was a little hesitant and honestly didn’t think it would taste great. But I bought it anyway! To my surprise it is my favorite flavor. It’s not too strong, just a hint of pumpkin. I love it. I highly recommend giving it a try!Image Source: Amazon

Hot Iron Holster: I am the biggest sucker for Instagram giveaways and that is exactly where I discovered this little gem. I entered said Instagram giveaway more than a few times and then decided I just needed to buy the holster. I never win anything anyway. I try to convince myself that I am an organized person, but let’s be honest, my bathroom is one big hot tool mess. This is a game changer. Grab your curling wands, flat irons, and blow dryers and take them from hand to holster. You need this. I repeat, YOU NEED THIS! Image Source: Target

Anker 40 W 4-Port USB Wall Charger: 2016 and all it’s technological perks is a pretty sweet time to live in. I mean, there are apps for everything you could ever need, watches that tells us the time, how many steps we’ve taken and how long we slept last night, and FaceTime to connect us to people we love miles away, I don’t know about you, but sometimes I find myself working on my laptop, Pinterest-ing (yes, it’s a verb) from my iPad, and texting from my iPhone. Hashtag: technology addict. And no, this is not a post about how we should be spending less screen time and more real time. This is a shout out for the technology addicts that constantly find themselves searching for a free outlet to charge one of their many devices. I feel you! I travel a lot for work and was on Amazon one day to buy a new charger for my phone so that I could have one for my house and one for my travel bag, when I saw this magic little thing. I can charge ALL the things. AT ONCE. It’s perfect. This baby saves my life. I plug it in at night and by morning my iPhone, iPad, FitBit, and extra batter pack are all charged and ready to go! No more hunting for multiple outlets. No more forgetting my charging cord because I had to put it behind the couch because it was the only outlet left open, nope, none of that. It’s simple. It’s easy. And I love it. If you’ve got a litany of devices this baby is for you. Go buy it on Amazon now and thank me later. You’re welcome.Image Source: Amazon

Ryobi 2 Amp 1/4 Sheet Sander; You are probably thinking what?!? A power tool? A favorite? Yes, that is right! You read that right. This Ryobi sander has become a favorite of mine. I never thought I would want my own power tool of any sort but, it would only be natural for me to have one amongst my other craft tools. Just ask my friends and family–they can attest to that statement. When it comes to craft tools and machines, I am the queen of them! Some might say that I get that from my Dad because if you were to go into his garage you would find tools on tools on tools. Whatever you need, I’m sure he’s got it! When my arsenal of tools just can’t get my craft projects done, I usually ask my Dad what power tool of his I can borrow to get it done. One day as I was raiding his garage looking for some extra coarse sand paper he asked what I needed it for and he enlightened me and reminded me that I shouldn’t waste my time and offered me his electric handheld sander. I thought to myself, duh! Why didn’t I ask for this thing earlier. My friend Taylor and I could have saved so much time sanding our wood crafts we had worked on for hours the week before. I ended up taking it over to her house and we just both laughed at the ease of this little machine. Never again will we sand our wood creations without this Ryobi sander. If you are anything like my friend Taylor and I, we love distressing our painted wood projects and if you get one of these sanders it will change your crafting game and you will be making statements like “I LOVE power tools!” when you thought you’d never say something like that! The Ryobi sander is so easy to use and is the best time saving power tool! Image Source: Home Depot

Pack-it Freezable Lunch Bag: I have a frequent resolution to take my lunch to work, you know, to be healthy and avoid eating potato munchers and mozzarella sticks from the hospital cafeteria. It’s a fleeting goal, so I’ve tried to work extra hard at it for consistencies sake. As is the case with most resolutions/goals, I decided I didn’t have the right tools to be successful in this endeavor. A big problem with bringing my lunch is that I rarely want to eat said food. And commonly it has to do with the fact that when I open my lunch from home it usually contains a room temperature yogurt and an awkward half-defrosted, melting Lean Cuisine (making it very tricky to reheat according to package directions!). Ew gross. However, I would like to say that I have yet to develop any sort of food borne illness from consuming 12-hour room temp yogurts over the years. But each day I am baffled how the act of taking my target-sack-wrapped lunch out of my bag and walking it down the hall to the work fridge escapes me. It’s a quick walk, but it never seems to happen.

The moment I get to work it seems my phone rings, my pager goes off, or I’m seduced by an email and before I know it its 2:00pm and the lunch sack is still sitting on the floor next to my bag. “Dang it!!!,” I mutter and defeatedly reach for the lukewarm yogurt to keep my ravenous stomach from eating itself. Everyday I vow to remember, but I’d say I’m about 1/5. So when my friend told me about the Freezable Pack-it lunch bag I was instantly interested. The entire lunch bag acts as one big ice pack and keeps your lunch cool for 11 hours! That’s exactly what I need. And naturally buying this new lunch bag will further inspire me to bring healthier foods, spend less money, and have greater overall happiness, right??? Right. 😉 And the best part is when you’re done it folds up flat and you don’t have to haul home a bulky lunch bag in your purse.

Kids love these too. I bought one for all my nieces as a back-to-school present. You can sometimes find these little gems at Home Goods/ TJ Maxx for a discounted price or you can head straight to Amazon and buy one right now (my preferred method for most things).Image Source: Amazon

Table Top Hanging Folder: Nate Berkus and Target. Need I say more? This hanging file folder is not just for classing up the ole office cubicle. It is the perfect addition to your personal homework station. Use it to organize homework by child, subject, or even by due date. The possibilities really are endless and it sure is easy on the eyes.Image Source: Target

Logitech Bluetooth Multi-Device Keyboard: I’m sitting here writing (typing) this post using my new FAVORITE tech product purchase! It’s the handy Logitech Bluetooth Multi-Device Keyboard for Smartphones, Tablets, and Computers–it’s compatible with Apple products, Windows, Android, and Chrome devices. I love that I can seamlessly change between typing on my phone and my iPad. How awesome is that! And if I really wanted to, I could have a third device connected to this keyboard. If you didn’t catch that…that is 3 Bluetooth enabled devices at once! All you have to do is setup up your desired devices and with a twist of a button you can switch between devices. So simple and easy! A monkey could do it! And every time that I use this keyboard I think to myself…why did I not buy this thing a long time ago.

Its been sitting in my Amazon shopping list burning a hole in my Amazon account like money burns a hole in my pocket! Haha! I kept going back and forth asking myself if it was something I needed and worth the money. I finally ordered it. I’ve only had it for a couple of weeks and I already love it! Now that I have it and have been using it, I’ve wondered why I didn’t invest in this thing sooner.

I love being able to use my phone but it’s great with my iPad too because I find it pretty hard to type up a paper on an iPad. This keyboard is portable so you can use it anywhere with no need to plug it into an outlet. You only need 2 AAA batteries. It’s been a lifesaver when I’ve had to type up a long email, blog post, or recipe. And besides the practical factor of this keyboard, I’ve been challenging myself and my family to typing speed tests with the app TapTyping. I don’t know about you but I used to love playing typing games in elementary school when we had to learn type and practicing your home row proficiency. Is there anyone else that used to love typing tests and games? This keyboard is practical and fun!Image Source: Amazon

Day Designer Weekly/Monthly Planner: Call me old fashioned, especially in a digital world, but I can’t resist purchasing a a cute monthly planner at the beginning of each school year. When I walked into Target last week they had so many cute planners calling my name. I decided to go with this cute pink and navy striped planner becaues it easily fits in my purse. Image Source: Target